--- title: "Intrusive interstitials update (2017): what changed and what now" url: https://seomadman.com/updates/intrusive-interstitials-update-2017 section: updates language: en published: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z modified: 2026-09-26T00:00:00.000Z author: Adam Hafez topics: ["Technical SEO"] --- # Intrusive interstitials update (2017): what changed and what now ## The short answer Google announced in August 2016 that from 10 January 2017, mobile pages whose content was not easily accessible from search results may not rank as highly. It named popups covering the main content and standalone interstitials. Legal notices, login dialogs and reasonable banners were exempt. Today Google treats interstitials as page experience, not a direct ranking factor. ## Key takeaways - Google announced the signal on 23 August 2016 and said it applied from 10 January 2017. - It targeted mobile pages where popups or standalone interstitials hid content on arrival from search. - Cookie and age verification interstitials, login dialogs and easily dismissed banners were not affected. - Google called it one of hundreds of signals, saying query intent was still a very strong signal. - Google now says page experience aspects beyond Core Web Vitals don't directly help a site rank higher. ## What Google changed On 23 August 2016, Google announced a new mobile ranking signal. It said that "after January 10, 2017, pages where content is not easily accessible to a user on the transition from the mobile search results may not rank as highly." Google gave three examples of techniques that make content less accessible: - A popup that covers the main content, straight after arriving from search or while reading. - A standalone interstitial that the user has to dismiss before reaching the main content. - A layout where the above-the-fold area looks like a standalone interstitial, with the real content inlined below the fold. Google said three kinds of interstitial, used responsibly, would not be affected: those responding to a legal obligation such as cookie usage or age verification, login dialogs for content that is not publicly indexable, and banners that use a reasonable amount of screen space and are easily dismissible. The new signal also absorbed an earlier check for app-install interstitials, which Google removed from its mobile-friendly test. In the same post, Google announced it would remove the mobile-friendly label from mobile results, while keeping mobile-friendliness as a ranking signal. ## When it rolled out Google updated the announcement on 10 January 2017: "Starting today, pages where content is not easily accessible to a user on the transition from the mobile search results may not rank as high." Google gave no completion date or rollout length. ## What is known about its impact Google gave no figures on how many pages or queries were affected. It stressed the limits of the signal instead: it was "just one of hundreds of signals that are used in ranking," and "the intent of the search query is still a very strong signal," so a page with great, relevant content could still rank highly. ## What site owners should do The signal is no longer described as a separate ranking factor. Google's page experience documentation lists avoiding intrusive interstitials as one of its self-assessment questions, but says "Beyond Core Web Vitals, other page experience aspects don't directly help your website rank higher in search results." Google's interstitials guidance still recommends: - Use banners that take up a small fraction of the screen instead of full-page interstitials. - Do not obscure the entire page with an interstitial, unless it is legally mandatory. - Do not redirect users to a separate page to collect consent or input. - For a mandatory age gate, overlay the content rather than redirecting, so Google can still index some of it. ## How to check whether it affected you This is historical. Search Console keeps 16 months of performance data, so it cannot show January 2017. In archived analytics, compare mobile organic Google traffic for landing pages that showed interstitials in the weeks before and after 10 January 2017. The [Google Algorithm Updates timeline](/updates) lists the updates around it. ## Related updates - The [mobile-friendly update](/updates/mobile-friendly-update-2015) was Google's earlier mobile ranking signal. - The [Speed update](/updates/speed-update-2018) was the next mobile page experience signal. - The [page experience update](/updates/page-experience-update-2021) was the next update built on page experience signals. ## Frequently asked questions ### When did the intrusive interstitials update take effect? Google announced it on 23 August 2016 and said it would apply after 10 January 2017. On 10 January 2017 it updated the post to say the change started that day. Google stated no completion date. ### Which interstitials were exempt? Google said interstitials responding to a legal obligation, such as cookie usage or age verification, login dialogs for content that is not publicly indexable, and banners using a reasonable amount of screen space that are easily dismissible would not be affected if used responsibly. ### Is the interstitials penalty still a ranking factor? Not directly, by Google's current wording. Its page experience documentation says Core Web Vitals are used by ranking systems, and that other page experience aspects don't directly help a site rank higher, though they make it more satisfying to use. ### Why avoid intrusive interstitials if they don't directly affect ranking? Google's interstitials guidance says intrusive dialogs make it hard for search engines to understand your content, which may lead to poor search performance, and that users who find a site hard to use are unlikely to return. ## Sources 1. [Helping users easily access content on mobile](https://developers.google.com/search/blog/2016/08/helping-users-easily-access-content-on) - Google Search Central Blog (primary) 2. [Avoid intrusive interstitials and dialogs](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/avoid-intrusive-interstitials) - Google Search Central (primary) 3. [Understanding page experience in Google Search results](https://developers.google.com/search/docs/appearance/page-experience) - Google Search Central (primary)